Traction attachment foe



C. F. HALL.

TRACTION ATTACHMENT FOR MOTOR VEHICLES APPLICATION FILED an 5. m9.

1,325,088. Patented Dec. 16,1919.

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Snoentoz C. F. HALL.

TRACTION ATTACHMENT FOR MOTOR VEHICLES.

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Patented Dec. 16, 1919.

(lttmnup CLARENCE F. HALL, OF ATLANTA, GEORGIA.

TRACTION ATTACHMENT FOR MOTOR-VEHICLES. V r

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Dec; 16, 1919.

Application filed May 5, 1919. Serial No. 294,680.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CLARENCE F. HALL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Atlanta, in the county of Fulton and State of Georgia, have invented a new and useful Traction Attachment for Motor-Vehicles, of which the following is a specifiation. V This invention relates to a traction attachment for motor vehicles, one of its objects being to provide a simple, durable and eflicient device which can'be readily stored in the body of the vehicle and which can be applied quickly to the front and back wheels, thus to facilitate the extraction of the vehicle from mud holes and the like.

A further object is to provide an attachment of this character which is readily adjustable to wheel bases of different lengths and to wheels of different diameters.

Another object is to provide an attachment which will automatically become disengaged from the front wheel after the completion of one revolution thereof and during the movement of the rear or driving wheel onto the attachment.

Another object is to provide means whereby the device can be appliedwithout the necessity of jacking up the car in order to place the attachment in position thereunder.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the, details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that, within the scope of what is claimed, changes in the precise embodiment of the invention shown can be made without cleparting from the spirit of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings the preferred form of the invention has been shown.

In said drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a motor vehicle having the improvement applied thereto and showing the relative positions of the parts before the vehicle is driven forward onto the attachment.

of the attachment.

Fi .2. Fig. 5 is a section on line 5 5, Fig. 3.

Fig. 6 is a section on line 66, Fig. 2.

Fig. 7 is a plan view of the attaching strap used for connecting one end of the attachment to the front wheel, parts of the strap being broken away.

Fig. Sis an end view thereof, the ends being removed.

Referring to the figures by characters of reference A designates the rear section of the attachment and B designates the front section thereof. The rear section includes a rope 1 provided with parallel folded portions 2, constituting coupling members, the

folds of each member being held together at desired points by wrappings 3 of wire or the like. .Eyelets 4 may be interposed be" tween the folds wherever desired they being held in place by frictional engagement with the opposed portions of the rope. A portion of the length of the rope is extended transversely between the members ,2, as indicated at 5 and the ends of the rope are extended ,toward each other and in lapped relation, as indicated at 6, said end portions being flattened and clamped Within a metal clip 7, held thereto by rivets or the like. The rope 1 is housed within casings 8 formed along the edges of a strip 9 of canvas or the like, one end of this strip being secured within the clip 7, while the transverse portion 5 of the rope is secured in the other end portion of the strip. Crossed rows of stitches, indicated at 10 may be provided for reinforcing the fabric and, if desired, a bowed strip 11 of spring metal may be extended transversely within the strip 9 so as to hold said strip bowed transversely, it being understood that the clip 7 is similarly bowed. That end portion of the member A nearest the clip 7 is preferably reinforced by an added thick ness of fabric indicated at 12 and which extends along the bottom thereof. Ears 18 are provided at the ends of the clip 7 and are pivotally engaged by the ends of chains 14 which can be of any suitable construction. The clip 7 is adapted to be placed transversely upon the tire of the rear wheel W of the vehicle V and the chains 14 are adjustably connected together by means of hooks 15 or the like, so as to hold the clips 7 firmly to the tire as shown in Fig. 1; v

The member B includes a single length of rope 15 folded to form arallel members 16 preferably wrapped wit wire as indicated at 17 and forming terminal eyes 18 in which.

are mounted hooks 19. The ends of the rope are lapped and flattened as indicated at 20 and secured within clips 21. from which extend shanks 22 having balls 23 at their outer ends. The rope has an intermediate portion 2%. between the members 17 and this intermediate portion as well as the lapping por tion 20 and those portions of the rope'back of the members 17 are housed within casings 25 formed along the edges of a fabric strip 26 similar tothe strip 9. This strip is bowed transversely and, if desired, a transversely bowed cross strip 26 can be slidably mounted on the members 17, this stri havin terminal e es 2'? which en -a 'e and slide on the members 16.

A bowed strip 28 is adapted to be applied to one of the tires of the front wheels of the vehicle and may beattached thereto by a strap 29 extending between the spokes and adj ustably connected together. -On this strip is secured :an arcuate strip 30 having outstanding socket members 31 so shaped as to receive the ball 23, there being slots 32 in said members for the reception of the pins In using the device the strip 28 is attached to the front wheel of the vehicle close to and back of its point of contact with the ground. The balls 23 are then inserted into the sockets 31 and the member B of the attachment is placed on the tire of the wheel so as to extend therearound as shown in Fig. 1. The members 17 of the section B are extended to opposite sides of the wheel where it contacts with the gr und and the stri 26' is adjusted along said members 16 until it becomes wedged between the tire and the ground. The clip 7 is then attached to the front portion of the rear wheel close to its point of contact with the ground and the two sections A and B are drawn taut and adjustably connected by inserting the hooks 19 into certain of the eyelets l. Nith the parts thus applied the rear wheels are rotated slowly. During this operation they willride onto the sections A attached thereto and, at the same time, pull through the sections B upon the peripheries of the front wheels, causing said front wheels to ride onto the sections B. As the front wheels complete one revolution the balls 23 will pull out of the sockets 31, thus completely detaching the attachment from the front wheels.

It has been found in practice thatthis de vice constitutes a very efficient means for extracting motor vehicles from mud and the like and is particularly advantageous because it can be applied without the neccssity of jacking up the front wheels in order to place the attachment in position. Furthermore, the attachment provides a solid unbrokensurface on which the wheels can travel through which the mud will not seep. Likewise this structure will not cut through the mud and reduce the efficiency of the device as where transverse chains or the like might be substituted for the fabric strips.

The adjustable strip .26 is important be cause it can be positioned tight against the wheel base and thus insure a prompt movement of the front wheel onto the front section as soon as the rear wheel is rotated.

The device can obviously be adjusted to wheel bases of different lengths and, when not in use, the various parts can be disconnected and stored readily.

What is claimed is:

1. A device of the class described including a front wheel engaging section, means for attaching one end thereof to the wheel, means at the other end thereof for-straddling the wheel base, asection for attachment to the rear wheel, and means for connecting the two sections.

2. A device of the class described including a section for attachmentto the rim portion of the rear wheel of a vehicle, a section to be applied to the front wheel, means at oneend of the second section for detachably securing said end to the front wheel close to and back of the base thereof, and means at the other end of said section for straddling the base of the wheel and engagingv the first named section.

3. The combination with a section for attachment to the rim portion of the .rear wheel of a vehicle, of another section, means for connecting one end of the last named section to the front wheel of a vehicle,=close to and back of the base thereof, members at the other end of the last named sectionfor straddling the base portion of the front wheel and adjustably connecting saidsection to the first named section, and means adj ustably mounted on said spaced members for wedging between the front wheel and the surface :on which it is mounted.

4:. A device of the class described including front and rear flexible belt. sections, means for securing the rear end of the rear section to the rim portion of. the rear wheel of a vehicle, means for connecting one end portion of the front section to the rim of the front wheel of a vehicle, close to and back of the base thereof, spaced members at the other end of the front section for straddling the base of the wheel-to which the section is applied, and means foradjustably connecting said members to the .rear section.

5. A device of theclass described including front and rear-.be'lt sections, means for securing the rear belt section to the rear wheel of a vehicle, an attaching member adapted to be secured to the rim portion of the front wheel of a vehicle, means on the front belt section for detachably engaging said attaching member, spaced members extending from onesend ofthe front section for straddling thebase of the Wheel and adjustably engaging the rear section, and a cross strip adjustably mounted on the spaced members and adjustable to position between the base of the Wheel and the surface on which it is mounted.

6. A device of the class described including adjustably connected front and rear sections, each section including a fabric strip, reinforcing means along the marginal portions of the strip, spaced connecting members extending from one end of each strip and an attaching means at the other end of each strip. I

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as 15 my oWn I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

CLARENCE F. HALL. Witnesses:

FRED G. ZERBs'r, M. C. OURETON. 

